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McDonough may be key to climate change

Supporters of climate change legislation now have a powerful ally in the White House: President Obama's chief of staff. Denis McDonough, the White House chief of staff, is best known for two things: his

"Denis McDonough, the White House chief of staff, is best known for two things: his national security chops — he had key roles on the White House National Security Council — and the high regard in which he's held by President Obama. McDonough has been part of Obama's inner circle for nearly a decade, and the president has called his new chief of staff one of his 'closest and most trusted advisers.'

"Here's what a lot of people don't know about McDonough: He has a background on climate change, and he takes the issue very seriously.

"'Denis McDonough understands the threat posed by climate change to national security more than any White House chief of staff in the 21st century,' said Daniel J. Weiss, director of climate strategy at the Center for American Progress, a liberal think tank where McDonough worked as senior fellow in 2006 and 2007; while there, he wrote and contributed to several papers on climate change."